best and worst place to buy soccer shoes/gear? Why?

totalsoccer wrote:

txtransplant wrote:I'm just not a fan of labeling kids by what they wear on their feet. Not every family is fortunate enough to be able to spend $75 - $100 on a pair of cleats.

I've seen just as many kids in cheap cleats play outstanding soccer as I've seen kids in top of the line cleats that don't have the first idea of how to properly strike the ball... hence my original post.

I don't think anyone on this post has said that the shoe a player wears makes the player. Just that a good idea would be to invest in a leather pair of shoes or a k-leather shoe that would possibly protect a young players feet in the long run! These shoes can be purchased at the youth sizes for $40-$60 dollars in all brands. If your purchasing $219 dollar shoes, well great, but not necessary!

I suspect the reaction was to: "If you are looking for the "fakers" as my DD calls them you can do Academy, Sports Authority, or Dicks."

Perhaps it was taken wrong, but when I first read it, it came across as kind of elitist, as if the cleats you purchase at those outlets were less acceptable.

As I read subsequent posts, I'm not sure it was meant that way, but at first glance that's what I saw, too.

ballhead wrote:

totalsoccer wrote:

txtransplant wrote:I'm just not a fan of labeling kids by what they wear on their feet. Not every family is fortunate enough to be able to spend $75 - $100 on a pair of cleats.

I've seen just as many kids in cheap cleats play outstanding soccer as I've seen kids in top of the line cleats that don't have the first idea of how to properly strike the ball... hence my original post.

I don't think anyone on this post has said that the shoe a player wears makes the player. Just that a good idea would be to invest in a leather pair of shoes or a k-leather shoe that would possibly protect a young players feet in the long run! These shoes can be purchased at the youth sizes for $40-$60 dollars in all brands. If your purchasing $219 dollar shoes, well great, but not necessary!

I suspect the reaction was to: "If you are looking for the "fakers" as my DD calls them you can do Academy, Sports Authority, or Dicks."

Perhaps it was taken wrong, but when I first read it, it came across as kind of elitist, as if the cleats you purchase at those outlets were less acceptable.

As I read subsequent posts, I'm not sure it was meant that way, but at first glance that's what I saw, too.

Yes, i think all the stores mentioned on this post all have great upside. just do your hmwk on all shoes and brands and do understand you can find quality at a discount price if patient! my opinion

That is first time I have been called an elitist
Now I will admit the DD can be a bit of a cleat snob but I guess the point I was trying to make is when the girls are young and playing Rec the plastic cleats are fine but when they start practicing 2-3 times a week and playing 2 games on the weekends or more. Quality shoes are a must. It's not how much you pay for them it's how well they are made.

http://www.prodirectsoccer.com/football-boots.aspx
I recommend Pro-Direct for purchasing boots for your kiddo. Costs a bit more, but top-end quality.

Agreed. Leather is better for the feet. My 3 all wore Copa's which you can find anywhere, but Abdi in Farmers Branch always gave me a good deal (maybe because I bought so many).

With the '06 gd, decided to keep her in turf shoes (better for them according to the ortho) as long as possible. At her size, almost everyone carries plastic. Soccer City in Richardson actually had a nice selection of leather at a fair price.

SoonerFan wrote:Spend the money and join the goal club and order from soccer.com. Fast shipping and good on returns. You can find some really good deals when they run their sales and then if you join their Goal Club you get that discount as well.

This might come as a shock, but eurosports gold club membership started off as a free promotion. i have had my gold club membership for 20+ years and did not pay a dime to become a member.

Gunner9 wrote:Agreed. Leather is better for the feet. My 3 all wore Copa's which you can find anywhere, but Abdi in Farmers Branch always gave me a good deal (maybe because I bought so many).

With the '06 gd, decided to keep her in turf shoes (better for them according to the ortho) as long as possible. At her size, almost everyone carries plastic. Soccer City in Richardson actually had a nice selection of leather at a fair price.

There's a reason why Copa's have stood the test of time. Still manufactured in Germany I believe. Great on the ball, with exceptional feel. Should be a consideration for any parent wishing to buy their kiddo a top quality leather boot.

hard to find the west german made copas anymore!

totalsoccer wrote:hard to find the west german made copas anymore!

LOL, I would imagine so..

Soccer Corner in Southlake gets my vote as the best. I love being able to go into a local store with a knowledgeable, friendly sales staff and be able to find high-quality equipment at a fair price - I said fair, not the cheapest. I know I could buy online or at big chains cheaper, but they don't compare in service. And with the club discount Soccer Corner gives, it isn't a huge savings to go to a chain anyway. I would rather support the local "little guy" where I get great service!

It killed me to have to buy cleats at Academy when DD told me at 8:00 p.m. after an evening skills session that her cleats were hurting her feet (first time she mentioned it) and I found them to be very snug. She had a tournament that weekend with an early Saturday game so we had to buy something immediately wherever we could and Academy was the only place nearby that was still open. They had *nothing* on the shelf in her size in any of a dozen styles she even half-way liked. So I just started hunting for anything in her size. I found a stock of two brand new Nike styles that were stacked among others styles, but since there was no sample out, we totally would have missed them if I hadn't been desperate to find something in her size. Fortunately DD loved them and they were a decent pair of cleats that fit well. When I pointed out to a sales kid that they might sell more of those if they had a sample out on the shelf, he just shrugged and grunted... literally. Luckily for us they had such poor merchandising or those probably wouldn't have been in stock in DD's size either.

Boots... kit... pitch... You ne'er know whought you might bloody well read on this fohum.

On this side of the pond, we call these things soccer shoes, uniform, and field.

Break it down for all these Brit-wannabe's with the English accent, T-Soc! Put the needle on the record! Cue the bass!

[quote="Xara"]Boots... kit... pitch... You ne'er know whought you might bloody well read on this fohum.

On this side of the pond, we call these things soccer shoes, uniform, and field.

Break it down for all these Brit-wannabe's with the English accent, T-Soc! Put the needle on the record! Cue the bass! [/quote


my biggest fan! good to hear from you!

My soccer dollars will go to the Southlake Soccer Corner!!! The staff is both friendly & knowledgable. I've NEVER been disappointed with price or product.

Busby Babes wrote: There's a reason why Copa's have stood the test of time. Still manufactured in Germany I believe. Great on the ball, with exceptional feel. Should be a consideration for any parent wishing to buy their kiddo a top quality leather boot.

My dd wore Copa's for the first 5 years of club soccer. Then in year six, she started blowing them out every two months. Switched to Nike Tiempos and hasn't had a problem since. Tiempos last a good six to eight months with her.

Soccer Corner in Southlake always has new ones when she needs them and the folks there are great.

I dread the day when my 04 DD gets to the age that the cleats get to the price they are at for the older ones. Wow....Im glad im not buying for 2 or 3...anyways, I second and third the opinion on Soccer Corner in Southlake. Very customer oriented and very friendly

Xara wrote:Boots... kit... pitch... You ne'er know whought you might bloody well read on this fohum.

On this side of the pond, we call these things soccer shoes, uniform, and field.

Break it down for all these Brit-wannabe's with the English accent, T-Soc! Put the needle on the record! Cue the bass!

you're a muppet

Swilleys down in Ennis has them black soccer shoes.

[quote="totalsoccer"]Soccer corner has weekends that they do a mass liquidation of all there shoes and clothing. You can find many deals! [/quote]

Agreed on Plano Soccer Corner's occasional liquidation sales in their overflow space. You can get very lucky there at times. However, Soccer Corner's main shoe section can get annoyingly crowded on Saturdays, which makes good service hard to find. SC has generally been OK for us if we know exactly what we want and especially if we go on a weeknight or close to closing time on Saturday. Prices haven't been great for non-liquidation items.

Soccer City in Richardson is much smaller than Corner, but it's close to home and I like supporting my neighborhood business. I've had some folks at City give my DDs lots of help and attention when trying on shoes. Prices have seemed run of the mill.

I was in Lake Highlands once when the DD unexpectedly needed some shoes ASAP. Some Googling led me to stumble into a small place called Golden Soccer somewhere north of Moss. I had low expectations, but my DD was taken aback by how many styles, colors, and sizes they offered in her favorite Nikes. We were the only customers, so we got good service. I've wondered if the place has survived, to be honest.

Amazon has also occasionally been a good source of steeply discounted Sambas that I convinced my DDs in their younger years to use as their only school shoes (thanks to a tip from JustASport probably seven years ago: black school shoes don't look bad so quickly, which Mom loves).

For balls I've bought Select Numero 10s several times for less than $30 and a Royale once for less than $40 on Amazon.

Eurosport has been OK for sale items over the years, and Goal Club points are a nice perk.

I saw earlier in the thread someone said go to a local store to try them on then buy them online. Having been in the soccer retail industry for a long time, that irritates me. These locally owned businesses in genral work hard to provide customer service and expertise to customers, to then have someone then after using this service go buy on the web. In my experience for the most part prices aren't that much cheaper on the web, and if given the chance most retailers will match the price unless it is something ridiculous.

The First Total Soccer wrote:I saw earlier in the thread someone said go to a local store to try them on then buy them online. Having been in the soccer retail industry for a long time, that irritates me. These locally owned businesses in genral work hard to provide customer service and expertise to customers, to then have someone then after using this service go buy on the web. In my experience for the most part prices aren't that much cheaper on the web, and if given the chance most retailers will match the price unless it is something ridiculous.

That was me, and I had my kid do that once. The boots locally were still 219 where online the exact same pair were on clearance for under 100. I have bought plenty of other stuff there and still do. If the price is close, I buy local, specifically, Southlake Soccer Corner. If the price is very different, I buy online if it's cheaper.

Southlake Soccer Corner is awesome.....very patient with my picky 5 year old daughter.

I believe the Soccer Corner is the best place to buy shoes & gear. They always have great deals & their sales staff seem knowledgable in helping you chose the perfect gear to fit your needs.

The best places locally are Soccer Corner in Plano and Soccer City in Lewisville. The best company on the web to order from pertaining to boots is Pro-Direct.